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Report into Stephen Lawrence officer 'withheld' from inquiry

Stephen Lawrence was stabbed to death in Eltham, south-east London, in 1993. Photo: Lawrence family

So more revelations in tomorrow's Guardian alleging another police officer involved in the original botched Stephen Lawrence murder inquiry had a corrupt background which was hidden from the MacPherson Inquiry.

Like the claims about retired detective John Davidson which surfaced two weeks ago there is nothing specific to the Lawrence case - the suggestion is that the officer was corrupt in relation to other investigations.

Regardless, Stephen's mother Doreen is furious that once again it appears Scotland Yard has failed to give her the full picture despite her own publicly held belief for nearly 19 years that corruption hampered the hunt for her son's racist killers.

What's more these claims have undoubtedly hit her belief that police had finally given her some measure of justice with the convictions in January of David Norris and Gary Dobson.

Now Mrs Lawrence wants the Home Secretary to set up a public inquiry into these and pre-existing claims that Norris's notorious gangster dad Clifford used his contacts among corrupt detectives to slow down the arrest of his son and accomplices.

Not only does she hope this would get to the truth about a murky era in London's policing but could throw up long forgotten - or concealed - lines of inquiry relating to the three remaining prime suspects for her son's murder.